How it feels to win $28.6m: Ashburton family reveal Lotto strategy that paid off

Ever wondered what winning millions of dollars in Lotto would feel like? Oh, who am I kidding? For most of us, it’s a weekly, if not daily thought…

Well, an Ashburton family are still trying to wrap their heads around what it feels like to suddenly go from everyday life to being $28.6 million richer.

After winning Powerball First Division in last week’s draw - the 11th biggest win in Lotto NZ history - the family say life has quickly turned.

The family, who wish to remain anonymous, are regular players who’ve been using the same numbers for years. They play a mix of similar numbers across just five lines on a $7.50 Powerball ‘pick-your-own’ ticket.

Last Wednesday, those numbers came through and changed EVERYTHING as they won the $28 million First Division prize and three Lotto First Division wins across three different lines - each worth another $200,000.

But at the time, they had no idea.

“It was the talk of the town,” the winning woman told Lotto NZ. “Everyone was asking each other if they were the winner and talking about what they’d do if they won.”

I never thought it would be us… but I couldn’t shake this strange feeling for most of the day.

It wasn’t until the following afternoon that things started to click as her daughter sent a message asking whether she’d checked their ticket.

“We checked the numbers, and sure enough… they were ours.”

“It was such a mix of emotions all at once - my husband cried, and none of us knew what to do with ourselves.”

Since officially claiming the prize on Friday, the family have spent the weekend taking it all in, which admittedly has been very overwhelming. 

“We’re still very much overwhelmed. We’re so incredibly grateful for what this is going to do for us, our family and our future,” the daughter said.

While there are plenty of big decisions ahead, they’re not rushing anything just yet.

“There is so much to think about - we want to enjoy our lives and help others, but it all needs time.”

The only thing they know for sure is that they can now start looking for their first home.

“It’s something we’ve always talked about… and now it’s possible.”

Now, I’m off to think about everything I would do with that much cash!